Minnow
A SILENT DROP OF OCEAN

The water-fox’s reaction to the scratches encouraged Minnow to continue the treatment, even as they walked along, but she hadn’t exactly thought the annoyed and unsocial boy was paying attention to what she was saying to the creature, let alone that he’d actually ask a question about her words that wasn’t so aimed to make her leave him alone. Minnow wasn’t entirely sure why the boy seemed so interested in whether she was from the sea, or why it had made him friendlier, but the change in attitude made her regret coming a bit less. Perhaps she needed to keep him in that mood.

“Not exactly. From the Swamp. I mean, I guess the sea would be somewhere nearby. Home’s not that far from the edge. At least the edge as far as anyone I know has seen.” She stopped in thought. What was beyond the swamp? Sure every other kingdom was certain that their lands ended in the salty expanse of undrinkable water. That was why water was such a major export from the swamp, but did it end in the sea, or was there more land to the south? It might explain why the water was never so salty.

“But the water was part of life there. Swimming, fishing, hunting…” she stopped again, beginning to feel the homesickness start to come over her again. It was becoming a very familiar sensation that she wished would stop. She focused on rubbing the mare’s withers and the friendly chirping of the fox to get her head straight. “It’s really different here.”

Minnow saw the shift in the mare she was relieved of her head shackle and nodded quietly as the boy mentioned the other ker probably being the same one. Unfortunately, it meant that it was less likely that more of her family, more of her home had managed to come here and escape the battles of Xara that were going on. It definitely meant that if they had, they hadn’t been spotted yet.

Minnow’s interest grew when the boy mentioned his ability, why he could speak to the mare, and her eyes grew right along with it. “You mean you have magic? That’s really cool! I’ve never met anyone with magic before At least not that weren’t aja. Except this one guy who was really nice. Somehow he made it so I could understand this, thus Common language?” She hadn’t gotten his name, but he had made it a lot easier to feel, at least a little more welcome and in place in this strange world. And he’d fed her.

Her focus returned to the mare, or “horse” as the boy motioned at her with his question. She frowned a little in thought. “Sort of?” she said, buying herself time. How exactly could you explain an aja? How did you explain any sort of animal? “Only they’re different too. Aja have different looks and abilities depending on their element. And there a lot more… common elements than you seem to have here. You only seem to have different versions of this same… what element exactly is ‘horse’?”

She grimaced a little, hoping she hadn’t offended the poor despondent mare further than she was. Certainly at home aja knew that other aja existed. They’d lived together in the wilds. Were these horses, that seemed to be captives and sold even at young ages, aware that more magnificent and sought-after versions of themselves existed?